Friday, January 28, 2011

On behalf of the Academy, I would like to thank...

Shopgirl was kind enough to give me an award! I am honored to be given this kind nod. This lengthy post departs from my usual, brief format, but it's all in fun.

1.If you blog anonymously, are you happy doing this? If you aren't anonymous, do you wish you started out anonymously, so that you could be anonymous now?

The computer makes me feel about as anonymous as I feel while driving a car. I would call it semi-anonymous. I don't mind if people see who I am, I try not to offend anyone, I never ever flick anyone off, and in my mild-mannered-type blog, I have nothing to hide.

2.Describe an incident that shows your inner stubborn side.

One thing that comes to mind is my insistence that we leave the deep south of Alabama. Being a Northerner, I put my foot down after two years there and insisted that we try and head back towards New York. We made it as far as Virginia, which is fine. The climate here is more northern- like and I am stubborn about my climate.

3.What do you see when you really look at yourself in the mirror?

I think that the reflection doesn’t look like “me”. Most days I feel much younger and more vibrant than my image appears.

4.What is your favorite summer cold drink?

My cold beverage of choice is tonic with a slice of lemon or lime. I drink it year round, but I may add a shot of gin on a summer’s evening.

5.When you take time for yourself, what do you do?

My perfect free day would be to see a good movie and then to browse some antique/junk shops.

6.Is there something that you still want to accomplish in your life?

Funny this question should pop up because I was thinking of starting a bucket list. I wouldn’t call them accomplishments per se, but things that I would love to do at least once or one more time. The word “accomplish”, in my mind, characterizes something really big. Like creating a work of art or fulfilling a career. So I am completing my accomplishment of raising four daughters to beautiful adulthood. Now it’s time for a bucket list : )

7.When you attended school, were you the class clown, the class overachiever, the shy person or always ditching?

I was mildly shy, a high achiever, but frequently ditching in favor of fun in high school.

8.If you close your eyes and want to visualize a very poignant moment in your life, what would you see?

I can’t think of one particular moment, but poignancy usually surfaces when I’m alone, in nature, or reflecting on something from the past.

9.Is it easy for you to share your true self in your blog, or are you more comfortable writing posts about other people and events?

It’s easier to share my true self than things about other people because myself is someone I’m more sure about : )

10.If you had the choice to sit down and read a book or talk on the phone, which would you do and why?

I woulddefinitely prefer to read a book. I like talking to people in person, though.

We have a lot in common--books, antiquing, raising daughters, northerners living in the south. And the mirror. I look and not only do I see my mother, but I see someone old. I think I look so old and tired.

"The world is fairly studded and strewn with pennies cast broadside from a generous hand. But who gets excited by a mere penny?...It is dire poverty indeed when a man is so malnourished and fatigued that he won't stoop to pick up a penny. But if you cultivate a healthy poverty and simplicity, so that finding a penny will literally make your day, then, since the world is in fact planted with pennies, you have with your poverty bought a lifetime of days. It is that simple. what you see is what you get."